Grand jury applicants sought

Applications for the Kern County Grand Jury will be accepted from now through April 4.

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Ridgecrest Daily Independent - Ridgecrest, CA

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Posted Jan. 7, 2014 at 10:46 AM

Posted Jan. 7, 2014 at 10:46 AM

Applications for the Kern County Grand Jury will be accepted from now through April 4. The Kern County Grand Jury is made up of a group of 19 citizens, randomly selected from a pool of citizens who have made their interest known. Applicants are interviewed and then nominated by the Superior Court Judges of the county. Judges are very interested in obtaining a volunteer pool representative of the ethnic and cultural diversity of all communities in the county. The final selection process will be conducted in open session of court during the month of June.

Once selected, Grand Jurors act as an investigative body to ensure that county and city governments are efficiently operated and that public funds are effectively spent. The Grand Jury also hears evidence of public offences presented by the Kern County District Attorney’s Office and, where appropriate, may issue criminal indictments. Applicants must be willing to spend approximately 20 hours a week in performing these tasks.

Candidates for the Grand Jury must be Unites States citizens, at least 18 years of age, have a working knowledge of the English language and have resided in the county for at least one year. Grand Jurors serve for a one year period beginning July 2014.

If Grand Jury service is for you, you may contact Penny Petris-Hall at the Kern County Grand Jury, 1415 Truxtun Avenue, Bakersfield, CA 93301, or telephone (661) 868-4797 to obtain your application for nomination. You may also download an application from the Grand Jury website at www.co.kern.ca .us/grandjury